Anti-refillling device for the neck of a container, typically a bottle, and a composite stopper cap  including said device

ABSTRACT

An anti-refilling device, designed to be fixed irreversibly to the neck of a container containing a liquid and to be closed by a stopper cap. The device has an axis coinciding with the axis of the neck when it is fixed on the neck, and has an axial dispensing duct for the liquid through which a transverse wall extends, fixed irreversibly to the anti-refilling device and provided with a plurality of traversing channels, each of the channels connecting an external opening, directed towards the outside of the container, to an internal opening, directed towards the inside of the container. The smallest dimension of the external opening is less than a critical dimension determined according to the critical surface tension of the material making up the transverse wall, typically about 0.7 mm, and the smallest dimension of the internal opening is greater than the critical dimension.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of stopper caps, and moreparticularly that of anti-fraud stopper caps for the conditioning ofliquid products of great value or great fame, typically in the field ofwines, alcohols, liquors or spirits. In the following we will use theexpression “anti-fraud” for the function of anti-refilling, preventingor indicating any fraudulent re-use of a container by filling with aliquid different from the original liquid. The term “tamper resistance”will be used for the “first opening indicator” function, in generalperformed by a strip or a skirt connected to the capsule by a line ofbreakable bridges, also known as a “weakening line”, which is detachedwhen first opening.

BACKGROUND OF RELATED ART

A great number of patents describing capsules providing an anti-fraud oranti-refilling function have already been disclosed.

The following may be quoted, as examples: French patents no 2 730 705, 2406 578, 2 387 1 66, 2 248 209, 2 738 802, English patents no 2 293 158,2 283 004, 2 274 837,2, 274 824, 2 274 638, 2 274 637, 2 274 639, 2 251846, 2 244 691, 2 244 048, 2 239 009, 2 238 288, 2 236 999, 2 236 998, 2231 304, 2 219 570, 2 195 974, 2 178 000, 2 176 467, 2 153 331, 2 0573902 008 531, 1 532 652, 1 476 542, 1 245 034, and internationalrequests WO 98/42587, WO 96/04179.

International request WO 00/07898, American patents U.S. Pat. No.6,230,937 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,047,791, English patent GB 491 737, andFrench patent FR 1 087 750 are also known.

In spite of the large number of already known devices, none of thesedevices has been able to impose itself in current practice as anefficient way of meeting with the objective of making containersequipped with these devices unfillable or of making any fraudulentre-use of a container by filling with a liquid different from theoriginal liquid detectable, either because these devices were not veryeffective or not effective at all, or because they were too complicatedto manufacture or to assemble with a container.

As the damages caused to manufacturers of famous brand products, forexample famous brand alcohols, are considerable, the applicant continuedsearching to find a more suitable solution to the problem posed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A first object according to the invention is an anti-refilling device,designed to be fixed irreversibly to the neck of a container containinga liquid and to be closed by a stopper cap, said device having an axiscoinciding with the axis of said neck when it is fixed on the latter,characterized in that it has an axial dispensing duct for said liquidthrough which a transverse wall extends, fixed irreversibly to saidanti-refilling device and provided with a plurality of traversingchannels, each one of said traversing channels connecting an externalopening, directed towards the outside of the container, to an internalopening, directed towards the inside of the container, the smallestdimension of said external opening being lower than a critical dimensiondetermined according to the critical surface tension of the materialmaking up said transverse wall and in which the smallest dimension ofsaid internal opening is greater than said critical dimension.

According to the invention, the traversing channels have a variablesection; this section can be defined by two extreme dimensions, measuredalong the main directions of said section. This section changes from theinside of the container to the outside so that the smallest dimensiondecreases until it reaches a value lower than a critical value whichdepends on a number of parameters, of which the ability of the liquid towet the surface of the transverse wall seems to be the most importantone. This critical value also depends on the viscosity of the liquid butthe latter is in general an alcohol for drinking, typically a cognac,and almost always has the same viscosity behavior.

Within a liquid (or a solid), all the bonding forces cancel each otherout. However, on the surface, these bonding forces have a resultantother than zero which is directed towards the interior of the liquid.The surface then behaves as if it were subjected to an externalpressure. The surface tension is by definition a force per unit oflength. It is often expressed in mN/m. The liquids concerned in thepresent invention are alcoholic beverages whose critical surface tensionis close to 50-70 mN/m.

The critical surface tension of a material is associated with thewettability of this material. Wetting of the transverse wall dependsinitially on the surface tension of the liquid and on the criticalsurface tension of the material making up the transverse wall. Bychoosing a material whose surface tension is lower than that of theliquid, the incorrect wetting which results from this can be used toprevent the liquid from passing through in one direction while allowingit through in the other.

The critical surface tension of solid substrates may be determined usingthe contact angle measurement method. A very rapid determination ofapproximate values can be made by means of special test inks (forexample, using the method ASTM 0 2578/67).

The applicant found that it was initially necessary to check the size ofthe smallest dimensions of the opening: as, on the external side, theedges and the wall of the channels are not wetted, or only slightly soby said liquid because of the critical surface tension of the materialmaking up the transverse wall, the liquid cannot easily penetrate intothe traversing channel. In contrast, on the internal side, the edges andthe entry of the wall of the traversing channels are more easily wet:the liquid can penetrate into the channel and pass through it to theoutlet opening and be ejected by means of the dynamic effect of theliquid flow and the pressure of the column of liquid still contained inthe bottle. Obviously, for the liquid contained in the container toleave easily down to the last drop, the smallest dimension of theexternal opening must indeed be lower than, but as close as possible to,said critical value.

Advantageously, said transverse wall is made of plastic with a surfacetension ranging between 25 and 50 mN/m. Preferably the smallestdimension of the external openings of the traversing channels is lowerthan 0.7 mm, while the smallest dimension of their internal openings isgreater than 0.7 mm Preferably also, the smallest dimension of theexternal openings is lower than 0.6 mm, which makes fraudulent use evenmore difficult. Advantageously, the smallest dimension of the internalopenings is greater than 0.8 mm, which facilitates the flow of liquidcontained in the bottle.

The transverse wall is substantially perpendicular to the axis of saiddevice. Preferably, the central part of said transverse wall appears asa grid with a traversing channel system with sections whose shapefactor, defined by the ratio of the largest dimension to the smallestdimension, is less than 2, and preferably close to 1. Advantageously, tofacilitate flow, the internal openings are square or rectangular inshape.

Said transverse wall may be plane. In this case, said traversingchannels all are substantially directed along the axis. In anothermethod, they all are tilted at an angle α in relation to the axialdirection of the device, angle α typically lying between 30 and 60°. Instill another method said traversing channels are made up of two axialparts communicating between each other but offset from each other inrelation to the axis.

Said transverse wall may also be convex with its convexity turnedtowards the outside, typically in the shape of a hemispherical dome. Thetraversing channels are then preferably tilted in relation to the normaldirection to said transverse wall so that they remain substantiallyparallel to said axial direction.

Such a transverse wall makes it possible to prevent or at least to givewarning of any fraudulent re-use of the container by filling with aliquid different from the original liquid: to introduce this liquidfraudulently, it is necessary to inject it under pressure while allowingthe air contained in the bottle to escape. Provided said transverse wallis endowed with suitable mechanical properties, the forces to be broughtinto play will necessarily destroy said wall. The invention thereforebecomes particularly advantageous if said transverse wall is made of asufficiently rigid and fragile material for any fraudulent attempt torefill said container to be made visible by the destruction or thedeterioration of all or part of said transverse wall.

Preferably, said transverse wall is made of polyethylene terephthalate(PET) or polystyrene (PS), in particular high-impact polystyrene (SB) orcrystal polystyrene. Its thickness ranges between 0.5 and 2 mm.

To facilitate destruction of the device in the event of fraudulenthandling, a single-piece molded device including a substantiallycylindrical side wall to which said transverse wall is connected via aplurality of N easily breakable bridges is used, N being preferablylower than 12, of unit section less than 2 mm², and preferably less than1 mm². Advantageously, said transverse wall includes in its central parta grid provided with said plurality of traversing channels and on theperiphery a plurality of curvilinear slits, the smallest dimension ofwhich is less than said critical dimension, typically, for a plastictransverse wall, less than 0.7 mm, and preferably less than 0.6 mm. Theplurality of curvilinear slits is bounded by a crown attached to saidside wall by easily breakable external bridges and to said grid byinternal bridges, also easily breakable.

Preferably, each plurality of internal and external bridges is regularlydistributed and preferably offset angularly by π/N in relation to theother plurality of bridges, N being preferably less than 12, of unitsection less than 2 mm², and preferably less than 1 mm².

For it to be fixed onto the neck of the container, the anti-refillingdevice also comprises a cylindrical wall provided with at least oneirreversible means of fixing. This wall may have several possibleaspects:

-   a) designed to be fixed around the glass ring (a device known as an    “out bore”), it has an internal diameter greater than the external    diameter of the glass ring; in this case, said irreversible means of    fixing may include:-   a1) at least one hook or a typically ring-shaped rib working in    conjunction with the fixing zone of the counter-ring, or-   a2) at least one typically metal flange, surrounding said    cylindrical wall and made interdependent of the later, typically by    crimping, said flange being designed to be crimped onto the fixing    zone of the counter-ring.-   b) designed to be inserted inside the neck (an “in bore” device),    said cylindrical wall has an external diameter less than the    internal diameter of the neck; in this case, said irreversible means    of fixing includes at least one circular wing designed to work in    conjunction with said internal wall of the neck, its end, when the    device has not yet been inserted into said neck, being at a distance    from the axis of the device greater than that of the internal    diameter of the neck.

The anti-refilling device according to the invention is advantageouslyassembled with a stopper cap including at least one metal shell providedwith a metal skirt. It includes a temporary or removable means ofinterdependence, typically a screw thread or a reversible clip rib,designed to work in conjunction with said composite stopper cap. Forthis purpose, said metal skirt is provided with a complementary means oftemporary interdependence or is assembled to an insert provided withsaid means of complementary temporary interdependence.

In this way, an autonomous assembly can be obtained which includes thestopper cap itself and the anti-refilling device and which can be fixedonto the neck in a single stage when capping the container, typically byaxial depression or screwing. In the following, we will refer to such aunit as “composite stopper caps”. To facilitate handling of saidcomposite stopper cap, said cylindrical wall is given a diametersubstantially equal to that of the internal diameter of said metalskirt, and it is typically provided with a peripheral annular groove, sothat said device can be inserted inside said shell and madeinterdependent with it, by forming a crimping ring. In order to alsoprovide said composite stopper cap with a tamperproof function, themetal skirt is provided with an annular weakening line which separatesthe metal shell into a top section and a bottom section. After ruptureof the weakening zone, the top section belongs to the removable stoppercap and the bottom section, crimped either to the neck or to the bottompart of the anti-refilling device, remains fixed to the bottle.

Advantageously, the anti-refilling device is completed with a partacting as a check valve. For this purpose, the anti-refilling deviceincludes:

-   a) an upper part bearing said transverse wall,-   b) a lower part able to provide a tight and typically irreversible    fit of said device to said neck and having a wall bounding a cavity,    and-   c) an anti-return device forming a moving part in said cavity which    cooperates with said lower part by forming a check valve.

The upper part is advantageously made irreversibly interdependent of thelower part by means of the joint working of complementary means ofassembly belonging to each of the two parts or by means of the flangewhich is used to fix the device onto the neck and which in fact alsoacts as an outer interdependence ring.

To perform its role as a non-return valve, the lower part includes acentral section preferably obstructing said cavity, typically in itsupper section, so as to imprison said mobile means of said non-returndevice within said cavity. It also includes an internal wall, equippedwith a lower lip bounding a typically circular lower opening of surfaceSo ranging typically from 50 to 150 mm². Said lower lip forms a seatworking in conjunction with said moving part, so as to form said checkvalve, said moving part tending to seal said lower opening by gravity,being held up against said lower lip when said container is typicallyupright, and to separate axially from said lower seat and thereby toopen said lower opening when said container is tilted in order to pourout said liquid. The lower part also includes a transverse wall designedto form an axial stop when fitting said anti-refilling device to saidneck, said transverse wall coming up against the mouth of said neck, soas to ensure automatic axial positioning of said device in relation tosaid neck during said fitting.

In so-called “in bore” devices, the central section of the lower partadvantageously includes said axial duct which bears said cylindricalwall provided with at least one circular wing designed to work inconjunction with the internal wall of the neck. At the top of this axialconduit is said transverse wall coming up against the mouth of the neckand onto which is fixed a flexible lip forming a pouring device,typically with a thinned-down part forming an annular hinge. In severalpreferred methods, the lower part includes an axial central section, theupper part is provided with a central wall onto which said transversewall is fixed and the axial dispensing duct is provided with anirreversible means of interdependence, typically a ring-shaped internalrib with a significant radial height, and the edge of the transversewall is an edge whose diameter is such that, after axial depression ofsaid top part on said lower part until the bottom end of said axialcentral wall comes up against the central section of the lower part,said edge is blocked axially upwards by said means of irreversibleinterdependence.

Advantageously, the central section of the lower part is provided with areversible means of interdependence working in conjunction with those ofthe stopper cap and the axial central section of the top part is asleeve inside which said temporary means of interdependence of thebottom section, and said temporary means of interdependence of the capcan move and cooperate.

In so-called “out bore” devices the edge of the lower part of thetransverse wall is preferably fixed onto the inner face of a sleevebelonging to the upper part. Advantageously, the lower part alsoincludes a means of protection prohibiting access to the anti-returndevice, located above the central section of the lower part. Said meansof protection is, for example, a full metal pellet which can movebetween the upper opening of the lower part and a crown which isconnected to the lower part by a plurality of axial arms surroundingsaid upper opening, and whose internal diameter is lower than thediameter of said full pellet.

Another object of the invention is a unit made up of a stopper cap andan anti-refilling device, said device being assembled temporarily orremovably onto said stopper cap, so that said anti-refilling device andsaid stopper cap can be assembled to said neck in a single stage whencapping said container.

Another object of the invention is a composite stopper cap including astopper cap and the anti-refilling device according to the invention,said device being assembled temporarily or removably to said stoppercap, characterized in that said stopper cap includes a metal shellprovided with a metal skirt. Preferably, said skirt includes at leastone annular weakening line, and one typically annular crimping zone,said weakening line being located above said crimping zone, saidweakening line being designed to facilitate initial opening of said capor to provide an indication of initial opening of said cap, after saidcomposite stopper cap has sealed said neck of said container during acapping phase of said container, said weakening line bounding a top partof said shell located above said weakening line and a lower section ofsaid shell located below said weakening line, said lower section beingcrimped to said lower part typically by spinning or metal crimping ofsaid lower part into an annular groove in said external wall, ordesigned to be crimped to said neck, under its glass ring.

FIGURES

FIG. 1 a schematically represents an anti-refilling device according tothe invention as a diametrical half-section.

FIG. 1 b is a view from above of an anti-refilling device according tothe invention.

FIG. 2 schematically represents several transverse walls according tothe invention as diametrical half-sections.

FIG. 3 schematically represents a cross-section of several types oftraversing channels according to the invention.

FIG. 4 schematically represents as a diametrical half-section anotheranti-refilling device according to the invention, able to be associatedwith a composite stopper cap

FIG. 5 represents schematically as diametrical half-section ananti-refilling device according to the invention, similar to that ofFIG. 4 but having an additional anti return device.

FIG. 6 represents as a diametrical half-section an anti-refilling deviceaccording to the invention, of the “out bore” type, similar to that ofFIG. 5, having a threaded insert with a thick skirt.

FIG. 7 represents as a diametrical half-section an anti-refilling deviceaccording to the invention, of the “out bore” type in which the cap doesnot have an insert (the screw thread is made directly, using serratedrollers, on the threaded glass ring during capping).

FIG. 8 represents as a diametrical half-section an anti-refilling deviceaccording to the invention, of the “out bore” type, whose top and bottomparts are assembled using a flange acting as an external interdependencering of and which is also used to fix said device onto the neck bycrimping. In this version, the cap has no tamperproof means.

FIG. 9 represents, as a diametrical half-section, an anti-refillingdevice according to the invention, of the “out bore” type, whose lowerand upper parts are assembled using a flange which has been insertedinside a metal shell provided with a weakening line in order to providetamper-resistance for said cap.

FIG. 10 represents as a diametrical half section, an anti-refillingdevice according to the invention, of the “in bore” type, also acting asa pourer and assembled with a composite stopper cap provided with a lid(21′) and with a metal shell whose skirt is threaded by rolling on thethread of the glass ring. The device includes a complementary means forfixing to the neck, including an adhesive (70) borne by the surface ofthe wing (334).

FIG. 11 represents as diametrical half section an anti-refilling deviceaccording to the invention, of the “in bore” type, similar to the deviceshown in FIG. 10 but assembled to a composite stopper cap provided witha threaded insert (21). The device includes a complementary means forfixing to the neck, including an elastomer O-ring (71) placed on thecylindrical wall (36′).

EXAMPLES OF EMBODIMENTS A. Transverse Wall (FIGS. 1a, 1 b and 2; FIGS. 5to 9, FIG. 3, FIGS. 10 and 11)

FIG. 1 a illustrates the characteristics common to all theanti-refilling devices according to the invention: said device has anaxis (10) which coincides with the axis of the neck (40) of thecontainer when it is fixed to the latter. It has an is axial duct (39)for dispensing said liquid through which a transverse wall (6) passes,fixed irreversibly to said anti-refilling device (3) and provided with aplurality of traversing channels (63). Each traversing channel (63)connects an external opening (60) directed towards the outside of thecontainer to an internal opening (61) directed towards the inside of thecontainer. The smallest dimension of said external opening (60) isselected for it to remain lower than a critical dimension determinedaccording to the critical surface tension of the material used to makesaid transverse wall. On the other hand, the smallest dimension of saidinternal opening (61) is selected to be greater than said criticaldimension.

The transverse wall (6) is made from plastic which has a criticalsurface tension ranging between 25 and 50 mN/m. The smallest dimensionof said external opening (60) is lower than 0.6 mm and the smallestdimension of said internal opening is greater than 0.8 mm. Thetransverse wall (6) appears as a grid with a network of traversingchannels with roughly square sections which decrease gradually from theinside to the outside.

The transverse wall (6) is convex with its convexity turned towards theoutside, typically in the shape of a hemispherical dome. It is made of asufficiently rigid and fragile material for any fraudulent attempt torefill said container to be made visible by the destruction or thedeterioration of all or part of said transverse wall.

Preferably the device and the transverse wall are molded in a singlepiece, from a material such as high-impact polystyrene or crystalpolystyrene. The axial dispensing duct (39) and the transverse wall (6)are connected via a plurality of bridges (65) whose section is less than1 mm². The transverse wall (6) includes in its central section a gridprovided with said plurality of traversing channels (63) and around theedge a plurality of curvilinear slits (64), whose smallest dimension isless than 0.6 mm. Said plurality of curvilinear slits is bounded by acrown (67) attached to said axial duct (39) by 8 regularly distributedexternal bridges (65) and to said grid (6) by 8 internal regularlydistributed bridges (66), offset angularly by π/8 in relation to theexternal bridges (67).

In the more specific examples given in FIGS. 5 to 9, the transverse wall(6a) is presented as flat and perpendicular to the axis, like the wallsillustrated in FIG. 3. The traversing channels (63) are axial, i.e. aredirected substantially along a normal direction to said transverse wallas illustrated in FIG. 3 a). In other variants, they are tilteddifferently in order to prevent, or at least to obstruct, the insertionof a tapered object towards the inside of the container. For example,case b) in FIG. 3 a illustrates channels tilted at an angle α to theaxial direction (10) of the device (3), angle α typically rangingbetween 30 and 60°. In case c), the traversing channels (63) are made upof two axial prismatic sections (630, 631) communicating between eachother but offset from each other in relation to the axis. The section(631) directed towards the inside is larger in section. In FIG. 3D, wehave schematically shown the molding tooling used to obtain thetransverse wall illustrated in 3 c.

On the “out bore” versions (FIGS. 5 to 9) we have shown in dotted linesan alternative in which the wall is convex in the shape of hemisphericaldome. Lastly, for the “in bore” versions in FIGS. 10 and 11, thetransverse wall is in the form of a portion of an O-ring orhemispherical dome without a central part, the latter being occupied bythe axial central part (310′) of the top part (31′) of the device.

B. Fixing to the Neck

All the anti-refilling devices according to the invention have acylindrical wall (36, 36′) provided with at least one irreversible meansof fixing to said neck.

B.1 Fixing by Clipping (FIGS. 1 a, 4,5 and 6)

In these examples, said cylindrical wall (36) has an internal diametergreater than the external diameter of the glass ring, and theirreversible means of fixing is a hook (360) working in conjunction withthe fixing zone (405) of the counter-ring (403).

B.2 Fixing by Crimping (FIGS. 7,8 and 9)

In these examples, said cylindrical wall (36) has an internal diametergreater than the external diameter of the glass ring and said means ofirreversible fixing includes at least one metal flange (38), whichsurrounds said cylindrical wall (36) and which is interdependent of it,said flange being designed to be crimped onto the fixing zone (404) ofthe counter-ring (403). The flange (38) was made interdependent withsaid cylindrical wall (36) by at least one crimp onto an upper annularperipheral shoulder (362) adjacent to said cylindrical wall (36).

-   B.3 Fixing by Insertion Inside the Neck (FIGS. 10 and 11)

In these examples, said cylindrical wall (36′) has an external diametersmaller than the internal diameter of the neck (40) and saidirreversible means of fixing includes at least one circular wing (334)designed to work in conjunction with said internal wall of the neck, itsend, when the device has not been inserted into said neck, being at agreater distance from the axis (10) than said internal diameter of theneck. It may include a complementary means of fixing (7) to the neck(40) including either an adhesive (70) borne by the surface of said wing(334) (FIG. 10) or an elastomer O-ring (71) placed on the cylindricalwall (36′) (FIG. 11), or both, so as to ensure a tight fit of saiddevice (3) to said neck (40).

C. Tamper-Resistance (or First Opening Indicator) (FIGS.4,5,6,7,9,10,11)

Except for the example in FIG. 8, which has a simple cap, without atamper-evident device, the caps in FIGS. 4,5,6,7,9,10 and 11 aretamperproof composite caps (1).

The anti-refilling device is provided with a temporary means ofinterdependence, typically a screw thread (370) (FIGS. 4 to 7 and 9) ora reversible clipping rib (371) (FIGS. 10 and 11), designed to work inconjunction with the stopper cap (2). The latter includes a metal shell(20) said metal skirt (200) of which is provided with a complementarymeans of temporary interdependence (204) (FIG. 7) or which is assembledwith an insert (21) or an obturator (21′) provided with said means ofcomplementary temporary interdependence (214), complementary to 370,FIG. 4 (identical system in the examples shown in FIGS. 5,6,8 and 9),(214′ is complementary to 371, FIGS. 10 and 11). The temporary assemblyof the anti-refilling device and the cap forms a composite“ready-to-fit” cap on the neck of a container.

During capping, the composite cap is fitted onto the neck by axialdepression until the transverse section (34, 34′) of the lower part (30,30′) comes up against the mouth (400) (except for the device shown inFIG. 4, which is cast solid and consequently does not have a lower part,but which is fitted in the same way, mutatis mutandis). The “out bore”devices shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are clipped onto the glass ring. Asfar as the other “out bore” devices (FIGS. 7 and 9) and the “in bore”devices (FIGS. 10 and 11), are concerned, the skirt (200) of the metalshell (20) is crimped onto the fixing zone (404) of the counter-ring(403). For all these examples (clipped “out bore” in FIGS. 4,5 and 6,non-clipped “out bore” in FIGS. 7 and 9 and “in bore” in FIGS. 10 and11), the skirt (200) of the shell (20) is provided with a weakening line(201). The weakening line (201) is designed to facilitate initialopening of the cap (2) or to provide an indication of initial opening ofsaid cap (2). It bounds an upper section (202) of the shell (20),located above said weakening line (201), and a lower section (203) ofsaid shell (20) located below said weakening line (201).

As far as caps with non-clipped “out bore” device and “in bore” deviceare concerned, the lower part (203) has a zone (205) which is crimped tothe neck under its glass ring (401) As far as capsules with clipped “outbore” device are concerned, the lower part (203) has a zone (206) whichis crimped onto the lower part (30), in an annular groove (361) of theexternal wall (36).

D. Two Part Anti-Refilling Device, Including a Check Valve (FIGS.5,6,7,8,9,10,11)

This device includes an upper part (31, 31′) bearing said transversewall (6, 6′) and a lower part (30, 30′) bounding a cavity (300, 300′),said lower part (30, 30′) being able to provide a tight and typicallyirreversible fit for said device (3, 3′) onto said neck (40), and ananti-return device (5) forming a mobile part (50) within said cavity andworking in conjunction with said lower part (30, 30′) to form a checkvalve.

Said upper part (31, 31′) is made irreversibly interdependent of saidlower part (30, 30′),

a) by means of joint working of complementary means of assemblybelonging to each of the two parts:

-   -   ring-shaped ribs (302) on the lower part and (312) on the upper        part. These ribs are illustrated in FIG. 5, but not shown in        FIGS. 6 and 7.    -   ribs (302′) worked into the upper end of the axial dispensing        duct (39′) working in conjunction with the edge (68′) of the        transverse wall (6′) (“in bore” versions, illustrated in FIGS.        10 and 11)

b) or by means of a flange (38) which acts as an externalinterdependence ring and is also used for fixing onto the neck(illustrated in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9).

The lower part (30, 30′) includes a central section (301, 301′)obstructing said cavity (300, 300′) at its top part, so as to imprisonsaid mobile means (50) of said anti-return device (5) in said cavity(300, 300′). Said lower part (30, 30′) includes an internal wall (33,33′), equipped with a lower lip (330, 330′) bounding a typicallycircular lower opening (331, 331′) of surface S_(0.), typically rangingfrom 50 to 150 mm², said lower lip forming a seat working in conjunctionwith said moving part (50), so as to form said check valve, said movingpart (50) tending by gravity to close said lower opening, being pressedup against said lower lip when said container is typically upright, andto separate axially from said lower seat and therefore to open saidlower opening when said container (4) is tilted in order to pour outsaid liquid. It also includes a transverse wall (34, 34′) designed toform an axial stop when fitting said device (3, 3′) to said neck (40),said transverse wall (34, 34′) coming up against the mouth (400) of saidneck (40), so as to ensure automatic axial positioning of said device inrelation to said

D1. “In Bore” Devices (FIGS. 10 and 11)

The lower part (30′) includes said axial duct (39′) which bears saidcylindrical wall (36′) provided with at least one circular wing (334)designed to work in conjunction with the internal wall of the neck andat the top of which said transverse wall (34′) is located, coming upagainst the mouth of the neck and to which is fixed a flexible lip (340)forming a pourer, typically with a thinned-down part (341) forming anannular hinge.

The lower part (30′) includes a central section (301′). The upper part(31′) is provided with an axial central wall (310′) onto which is fixedsaid transverse wall (6′). The axial dispensing duct (39′) is providedwith an irreversible means of interdependence (302′), typically aninternal ring-shaped rib. The periphery (68′) of the transverse wall(6′) is an edge whose diameter is such that, after axial depression ofsaid upper part (31′) onto said lower part (30′) until the bottom end ofsaid axial central wall (310′) comes up against said central section(301′) of the lower part (30′), said edge is blocked axially upwards bysaid means of irreversible interdependence (302′).

The central section (301′) of the lower part (30′) is provided with areversible means of interdependence (371) cooperating with those (214′)of the stopper cap and the axial central part (310′) of the upper part(310′) is a sleeve (311′) inside which said temporary means ofinterdependence of the bottom section (371), and said temporary means ofinterdependence of the cap (214′) can move and work in conjunction.

D2. “Out Bore” Devices (FIGS. 5 to 9)

The lower part (30) also includes optional means of protection (8) whichprohibit access to said anti-return device. These means of protectionare positioned above the central section (301) of said lower part (30).They appear as a full metal pellet (8′) which can move between the upperopening (335) of the lower part (30) and a crown (351) which isconnected to the lower part (30) by a plurality of axial arms (350)surrounding said upper opening. In order for said edge of the upperopening (335), the crown (351) and the axial arms (350) to imprison thefull pellet (8′), the internal diameter of the crown (351) is smallerthan the diameter of said full pellet.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS Composite stopper cap  1 Axial direction  10Composite stopper cap of 1  2 Simple stopper cap  2′ Metal shell  20Skirt of 20 200 Weakening line 201 Top section of 20 202 Lower sectionof 20 203 Thread of 200 204 Crimping ring on 40, 401 205 Crimping ringon 3 206 Plastic insert  21 Lid  21′ Threaded skirt 210, 210′ Means ofsealing 211, 211′ Flat seal 212 Circular lip 213 Screw thread 214Reversible clipping rib 214′ Anti-refilling device of 1 3, 3′ Lower part30, 30′ Bottom cavity 300, 300′ Central section of 30 obstructing 300301, 301′ Means of interdependence with 31, 31′ 302, 302′ Upper part 31,31′ Central axial section 310′ Sleeve 311, 311′ Means of interdependencewith 30 312 Inside wall of 30, 30′ 33, 33′ Lower lip/lower seat 330,330′ Lower opening 331 Annular wing of 33 334 Upper opening 335Transversal section of 30 34, 34′ Flexible lip acting as pourer 340Thinned-out part forming a hinge 341 Axial arm 350 Crown 351 Cylindricalwall of 30, 30′ 36, 36′ Hook for fixing to 40 360 Annular groove 361Upper peripheral annular shoulder 362 Means of interdependence of 3 with2 37 Thread 370 Reversible clipping rib 371 Flange 38 Outerinterdependence ring 381, 381′ Crimping ring on 401 382 Axial dispensingduct 39, 39′ Container Neck  40 Mouth 400 Glass ring 401 Anti-rotationnotch 402 Counter-ring 403 Fixing zone 404 Anti-return device  5 Movingpart  50 Ball  51 Transverse wall 6, 6′ Grid 6a, 6b, 6c Externalopenings 60, 60a, 60b, 60c Internal openings  61 Traversing channels  63Communicating axial parts 630, 631 Curvilinear slits  64 External bridge 65 Internal bridge  66 Attachment crown  67 Periphery 68, 68′ Furthermeans of fixing 3′ to 40  7 Adhesive  70 Elastomer O-ring seal  71 Meansof protecting the check valve  8 Metal pellet  8′

1. An anti-refilling device, designed to be fixed irreversibly to theneck of a container containing a liquid and to be closed by a stoppercap, said device having an axis coinciding with the axis of said neckwhen it is fixed on the latter, characterized in that it presents anaxial dispensing duct for said liquid through which a transverse wallextends, fixed irreversibly to said anti-refilling device and providedwith a plurality of traversing channels, each one of said traversingchannels connecting an external opening, directed towards the outside ofthe container, to an internal opening, directed towards the inside ofthe container, the smallest dimension of said external opening beinglower than a critical dimension determined according to the criticalsurface tension of the material making up said transverse wall and inwhich the smallest dimension of said internal opening is greater thansaid critical dimension.
 2. An anti-refilling device according to claim1 in which the smallest dimension of said external opening is less than0.7 mm and the smallest dimension of said internal opening is greaterthan 0.7 mm.
 3. An anti-refilling device according to claim 2 in whichthe smallest dimension of said external opening is less than 0.6 mm andthe smallest dimension of said internal opening is greater than 0.8 mm.4. An anti-refilling device according to claim 1 in which the centralsection of said transverse wall appears as a grid with a network oftraversing channels with sections whose shape factor, defined by theratio of the greatest dimension to the smallest dimension, is less than2, and preferably close to
 1. 5. An anti-refilling device according toclaim 4 in which said internal openings have a square or rectangularshape.
 6. An anti-refilling device according to claim 1, in which saidtransverse wall is made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) orpolystyrene (PS), in particular high-impact polystyrene (SB) or crystalpolystyrene.
 7. An anti-refilling device according to claim 1 in whichsaid transverse wall has a thickness ranging between 0.5 and 2 mm.
 8. Ananti-refilling device according to claim 1 in which said traversingchannels are directed substantially along a normal direction to saidtransverse wall.
 9. An anti-refilling device according to claim 1 inwhich said transverse wall is plane and in which said traversingchannels (63) are tilted by an angle α in relation to the axialdirection (10) of the device (3), angle α typically ranging between 30and 60°.
 10. An anti-refilling device according to claim 1 in which saidtransverse wall is plane and in which said traversing channels arecomposed of two axial parts communicating with each other but offsetfrom each other in relation to the axis.
 11. An anti-refilling deviceaccording to claim 1 in which said transverse wall is convex and has itsconvexity towards the outside, having typically the shape of ahemispherical dome.
 12. An anti-refilling device according to claim 11in which said traversing channels are tilted in relation to the normaldirection to said transverse wall so that they remain substantiallyparallel to said axial direction.
 13. An anti-refilling device accordingto claim 1 in which said transverse wall is made of a sufficiently rigidand fragile material for any fraudulent attempt to refill said containerto be made visible by the destruction or the deterioration of all orpart of said transverse wall.
 14. An anti-refilling device according toclaim 1 in which said axial dispensing duct and said transverse wall areconnected via a plurality of N bridges, N being preferably less than 12,of unit section less than 2 mm², and preferably less than 1 mm².
 15. Ananti-refilling device according to claim 1 in which said transverse wallincludes in its central section a grid provided with said plurality oftraversing channel and around the edge a plurality of curvilinear slits,whose smallest dimension is less than said critical dimension,typically, for a plastic transverse wall, less than 0.7 mm, andpreferably less than 0.6 mm.
 16. An anti-refilling device according toclaim 15 in which said plurality of curvilinear slits is bounded by acrown attached to said axial duct by external bridges and to said gridby internal bridges.
 17. An anti-refilling device according to claim 16in which said plurality of slits is bound by a crown attached to saidside wall by a plurality of N external bridges and to said grid by aplurality of N internal bridges, each plurality of bridges beingregularly distributed and being preferably offset angularly by π/N inrelation to the other plurality of bridges, N being preferably less than12, of unit section less than 2 mm², and preferably less than 1 mm². 18.An anti-refilling device according to claim 1, further comprising acylindrical wall provided with at least one irreversible means of fixingto said neck. 19-23. (canceled)
 24. An anti-refilling device accordingto claim 1, designed to be assembled to a composite stopper capincluding at least one metal shell provided with a metal skirt having,characterized in that it includes a temporary or removable means ofinterdependence, typically a screw thread or a reversible clipping ribdesigned to work in conjunction with said composite stopper cap, saidmetal skirt being provided with a complementary temporary means ofinterdependence or being assembled onto an insert provided with saidmeans of complementary temporary interdependence.
 25. (canceled)
 26. Ananti-refilling device according to claim 1, further including an upperpart bearing said transverse wall and a lower part bounding a cavity,said lower part being able to provide a tight and typically irreversiblefit for said device onto said neck, and an anti-return device forming amobile part within said cavity and working in conjunction with saidlower part to form a check valve. 27-29. (canceled)
 30. Ananti-refilling device according to claim 26, in which said lower partalso includes a transverse wall designed to form an axial stop whenfitting said device to said neck, said transverse wall coming up againstthe mouth of said neck, so as to ensure automatic axial positioning ofsaid device in relation to said neck during said fitting. 31-34.(canceled)
 35. An anti-refilling device according to claim 26, in whichthe periphery of said transverse wall is fixed onto the internal surfaceof a sleeve belonging to said upper part.
 36. An anti-refilling deviceaccording to claim 26, in which said lower part also includes means ofprotection prohibiting access to said anti-return device, positionedabove the central section of said lower part.
 37. (canceled)
 38. A unitmade up of a stopper cap and an anti-refilling device according to claim24, said device being assembled temporarily or removably onto saidstopper cap, so as to be able to assemble said anti-refilling device andsaid stopper cap to said neck, during capping of said container, and ina single stage.
 39. (canceled)
 40. A composite stopper cap according toclaim 24 in which said skirt includes at least one annular weakeningline, and one typically annular crimping zone, said weakening line beinglocated above said crimping zone, said weakening line being designed tofacilitate initial opening of said cap or to provide an indication ofinitial opening of said cap, after said composite stopper cap has sealedsaid neck of said container during a capping phase of said container,said weakening line bounding an upper part of said shell located abovesaid weakening line and a lower section of said shell located below saidweakening line, said lower section being crimped to said lower parttypically by spinning or metal crimping of said lower part in an annulargroove on said external wall, or designed to be crimped to said neck,under its glass ring.